


messages ! hankelty au

by orphan_account



Category: Hank Zipzer (TV)
Genre: Developing Relationship, M/M, emily is a good sister and we love her, frankie and ashley are in this, hank is really oblivious, instagram is a BIG part of this, mr rock knows everything, nick and his friends are all homos, nick is a disaster gay, nick's crush on hank is already established, nick's dad's an asshole, so are nick's friends but i gave them names
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-15
Packaged: 2019-11-08 01:39:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17972039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐛𝐨𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐳𝐢𝐩𝐳𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐦, 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲.𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝❪ 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝟏𝟕-𝟎𝟏-𝟏𝟗 ❫𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐲 @𝐳-𝐳𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐩𝐚𝐝





	1. ❝ego amo te multum❞

❝zitzer.❞ i spat at him.

all he did was roll his eyes.

that's what i called him. hank zipzer. the boy who has been my archenemy since that time he kicked sand in my eyes during the first day of school when we were four.

we were in playgroup, and it was our first day. hank wasn't liked by many people, but was close with frankie townsend and ashley wong. 

when it happened, i had been playing in the sandpit with my new bucket and spade i had gotten when i went to the beach with my family during the summer. all of a sudden, he comes running past through the middle of it and the sand went in my eyes.

i had tried to be nice, thinking it was an accident, but he did many other things that made him begin to think that he had it out for me.

he ran over my foot with a bike, had gotten paint all over my favourite shirt and had gotten me punished by the teacher for something i didn't even do.

we had hated each other for the longest time. but do you want to hear the weird part?

i know i said i hated him but... i don't think i do.

i didn't know what was happening to me. i had begun doing everything in my power to get his attention, but i guess i'll have to do something crazy.

something crazier than i've ever done before.

my friends had been trying to get me to make an instagram for ages, and this might be a bad idea but...

i'd do anything to talk to hank, to be able to become close with him.

the only problem is, how would i be able to keep my identity a secret? he would block me if i contacted him, as nicholas mckelty, trying to befriend him.

i'll think out that part later. for now, i just have to watch him from afar, hoping to someday be the object of his affection.


	2. Chapter 2

NICK'S USERNAME WAS CREATED BY @z-zoomers 

i spend the whole of lunch just staring at hank. his eyes sparkled in the sunlight, but it was just perceptual bias, nothing more. his eyes sparkle because of the way i think about him. i can't stop thinking about him.

i don't want to sound cliché, or be gross or too romantic, but i really like him and i hope he will feel the same someday.

when the bell finally rings, signalling last lesson, hank and his friends stand up and leave.

i trail behind them, my eyes on my feet. i can't look away, not from a boy like that.

not my sunshine boy, who makes unfunny zipper puns and has constant bedhead hair.

when we reach ms adolf's room, i sigh. i have to focus on my work, or my dad will kill me. 

why does sunshine boy have to bring his beautiful rays in here, to blind, to distract me?

i tried my hardest to focus on my work, and i did great. but the thought of hank distracted me at some points.

it's seriously not fair that i have to be distracted all because god decided to make a person as handsome as hank zipzer.

as the bell rings, i glance and frown at hank. he's got detention again, and he did nothing to get it.

❝nick, are you coming?❞ i hear whats-her-name calling me. i honestly couldn't care less about how short her skirt is and that stupid flick thing she does.

before hank directed his attention to me and would've realised i was looking at him, i pretended to be looking for something in my pocket.

❝yeah, lets go.❞ i say flatly, walking right past her and out the door.

we always bike home together, our group of friends.

whats-her-name, or eva i think, tobias, me and joshua.

we grab our bikes from the bike rack and begin pedalling home.

i usually never pedal this fast, but i have something to do that just can't wait.

the three of them slowly begin to leave, making me ride the whole rest of the way home.

i long for the day that me and hank can ride our bikes home together.

my cheeks flush red and i smile shyly to myself because of the thought.

—————

when i arrive home, i head straight to my room. dad isn't home yet.

as i flop onto my bed, i pull out my phone and download instagram.

after waiting a few minutes and putting my information in, i have two accounts.

the one is my actual account, the other my fake one to talk to hank on. if i have both, it won't be suspicious.

i found hank's account almost immediately.

❝zipperboy❞ was the account's name. hank's favourite things are zipper puns so that was the biggest clue.

about an hour after i found his account, he accepted my request and he sent me a request back.

i immediately accepted, my heart soaring.

i decided i would send him a message.

queenbee: is this hank zipzer?

i bite my lip, waiting for the reply. a few seconds later, i get a reply.

zipperboy: yes, why?

i worry for a moment. what would i say?

queenbee: i have a brother in emily's class and he said he had an older brother so i decided to see if i could get to know you.

it was a horrible excuse. i don't think he believes me.

zipperboy: what's your brother called?

i remember a boy in emily's class with the fake last name i have. he has an older brother in our year too.

queenbee: his name is richard honeycutt? do you know him?

zipperboys: emily mentioned him a couple of times i think.

queenbee: now that we know who each other is, can we get to know each other?

and my heart skips a beat when he sends the next message.

zipperboy: sure.

i smile to myself. maybe this could work.

—————

i wake up the next morning, phone in hand. had i really spent all night messaging hank?

my dad called me, telling me to ❝hurry up and get ready!❞ so i immediately jumped up and got changed into the westbrook academy uniform.

i hurriedly pulled my bike out of my bike rack, and rode to where me and my friends all meet up.

—————

i was about to put my bike in the school's bike rack like i do every morning, but then my sunshine boy came along, in all his glory, making me go weak in the knees and unable to put my bike in.

i just gave him an awkward smile as i rammed it into the rack.

he didn't notice. at least, i don't think he did.

—————

it's lunchtime again, and i sit at the table by the biggest, droopiest tree in the lunch area.

natural light made hank shine even more, just like sunshine.

that's why he's my sunshine boy.

—————

queenbee: cats are better

zipperboy: you have betrayed me

queenbee: :(

zipperboy: nevermind i don't want you to like dogs, you'll ruin them

queenbee: what

zipperboy: you use emoticons

queenbee: what's?? the?? difference?? between?? emojis?? and?? emoticons??

zipperboy: E V E R Y T H I N G

i laughed. we had the stupidest conversations, but they were the most important conversations i had.

my conversations with my father meant nothing, same with my conversations with my friends. 

but the conversations i share with my sunshine boy are the ones that matter most.

—————

lesbianlizardlover: you aren't richard's brother.

queenbee: i know. 

queenbee: it's nick, i'm sorry. i really like your brother and it's the only way i can talk to him.

lesbianlizardlover: i'll keep it a secret, just don't hurt hank, okay?

queenbee: i won't. i never want to hurt him.

lesbianlizardlover: good, you better not or i'll hurt you.


	3. ❝et dixistis liberati sumus❞

queenbee: hey

zipperboy: hi! are you in the canteen?

queenbee: no, i go home for lunch.

okay, i know it's bad to lie to hank. but it's better than telling him that i actually am in the canteen, because he will look everywhere for me - or theodore? - and he will be let down.

and i don't want that to happen. i can't let down my sunshine boy, not when our friendship is just beginning.

zipperboy: okay.

gazing at hank from across the tables, i could see him frowning at his phone. does our friendship mean as much to him as it does to me?

i looked down, suddenly feeling horrible for lying to him.

last time i lied to him, i got to hug him. why is it so different this time?

maybe because i upset him with this lie.

i mean, i wasn't really lying but i don't like admitting it's true.

because admitting that it's true is almost as bad as being weak - and from what father says, being a mckelty means being strong and courageous, not weak and scared.

❝nick?❞ josh asked from the seat next to me. i divert my eyes from my sunshine boy and turn to him.

❝yeah?❞

my sunshine boy is always on my mind, shining through my eyes, making me love him more even when i'm looking away.

—————

when lesson ends, eva is stood at the door, waiting for me. i reluctantly follow her.

when we get outside, we wait for tobias and joshua, before the four of us rode home.

i didn't want to go home. i didnt want to be home.

being home is something most people prefer. 

but school is my safe place.

—————

❝nick!❞ dad shouts. i had arrived home about an hour ago, and i was currently about to reply to hank. i frown at the last message hank sent me.

zipperboy: i hope you got home well 💓

i can't reply yet.

i stand up, close the tab and head downstairs, where he is waiting for me.

before i even reach the living room, i know what he's going to do.

❝dad, you called?❞ i said, a little bit scared.

he had said something that i saw as stupid and idiotic so i rolled my eyes from how stupid he was being. but that just earned me a slap across the face.

while my cheek burned and tears welled up in my eyes, i simply shrugged and walked out of the room.

he doesn't care about anyone but himself and what people think of him.

—————

queenbee: i did 💖 thanks hank

zipperboy: no problem, honeybee

i smile to myself at the small nickname. it came from my username, but i still think it was adorable.

queenbee: 💞💞

hank is making me more of a softie than i'd like to admit.

i fall asleep that night holding my phone to my heart, as if it was my sunshine boy himself.

—————

the weekend was spent exchanging messages with hank, but it didn't fill the void.

i needed to see his face, and it made the weekend feel as if it was passing slower.

but soon enough, it was monday again.

the sun was shining today, and it looked like hank's smile. except, the clouds didnt get in the way of his good mood.

i heard him talking to frankie and ashley about 'theodore' earlier.

with every nice word said, the hole in my heart began to close up a little.

my sunshine boy never failed to make me smile, or act like an idiot. 

my sunshine boy never failed to make my heart beat faster, and make the words get stuck to my tongue.

my sunshine boy being him was a good enough reason to smile everyday.

—————

i know i say school is my safe place, but now i think hank is my safe place. i trust him, i can talk to him about anything.

only problem is, he doesn't know it's nick mckelty behind the screen. he thinks i'm theodore honeycutt, he thinks im a good person, he wants to be around me.

but only when i'm theodore does he truly want to speak to me.

when i'm nick mckelty, automatically i'm nothing to him.

i want to be everything to him. i want to be the reason he smiles. i want to be his sky.

hank zipzer is my safe place. 

i find solace in his eyes, protection in his smile.

life is a hurricane.

but i have hank...

... well as long as i don't do anything stupid.


	4. ❝non dubito quia ego dilexi te❞

hank and i are really close now. we've come quite far from that day i messaged him. but with every day that goes by, i always end up thinking; how am i supposed to tell him my real identity without making him hate me even more?

i don't think i ever expected this to happen, to want to be friends - or even more than that - with hank, but now i do want that, a lot. i want hank to be mine; i have for the longest time.

i never actually hated him - but i believed he hated me so i just went along with it. 

it hurt me to act that way towards him, but it wasn't as if our 'friendship' was repairable.

—————

i, like every morning, began trying to put my bike in the rack, when eva appeared in front of me.

she puts her hand on top of mine and i pull it off. she's a nice girl, really pretty, but i don't like her that way.

i look away from her, my eyes on sunshine boy. he doesn't look at me.

i sigh, frowning.

will i ever get his attention?

she puts her hand, instead, on my arm. i give her a confused look. she sighed and she glared at me, stomping off. i don't worry about her though. she'll forgive me, i know she will.

—————

❝hank, tell us more about this theodore!❞ i heard frankie say.

him and ashley are definitely happy that hank has other friends.

hearing theodore, i eavesdropped. i know it's bad but i wanted to know what he thinks about theodore. the real me.

i hid behind the corner and my eyes stayed on hank the whole time.

❝he's really nice! and funny! he's awesome.❞

i blush deeply, running off in the other direction.

my sunshine boy thinks i'm awesome. he likes me.

suddenly, the black eye my dad gave me didn't hurt as bad anymore.

he's my sunshine boy; he can make everything feel better.

—————

i began to think of things i could do for hank, to prove to him i'm not as bad as i seem. give him flowers? no, too cliche. send him a note? too childish.

why is it so hard to think of things to give to hank? maybe because i'm so scared of his opinion.

what if he doesn't like it? what if he does and he wants to know who sent it?

i decide to just message him something, anything, just to get him to talk to me.

queenbee: wasps are just depressed bees

zipperboy: i 

zipperboy: are you high

i smile to myself. even just a message from hank can make me feel better.

—————

it's a british winter, so it's obviously very cold. i was bundled up in my scarf and gloves, and i swear i looked like a marshmallow. my dad didn't allow me to ride my bike after it snowed, in case it was slippery, which it was.

i walked onto the school grounds, and something didn't feel right.

when i looked over to the trees, i saw ashley and frank in their winter wear, but hank wasn't. he clearly looked very cold.

i saw emily as well, stood with a blonde girl who gave emily her gloves. i think her name is jordan.

seeing hank like that made me frown, so i walked right past them, and into the halls. i hid in the bathroom as i wrote him a small message.

dear hank,  
i noticed your lack of winter clothes today. i thought you looked cold, so i wanted to give you these.

taking off my scarf and gloves, i put them under the note and put them in hank's locker.

i saw him open his locker, his eyes widen at the sight of the gloves and scarf. 

❝n.m?❞ i hear him say, after reading the note aloud to himself.

he looked skeptical for a moment, but eventually slipped them on.

seeing my sunshine boy wearing my gloves and scarf is adorable.

he too, looked like a marshmallow. while the sun makes marshmallows melt, hank makes me melt with that smile of his.


	5. ❝suus 'zipzer❞

i didn't want to lie to my friends anymore. i love them, more than i would let on. i couldn't hide it from them forever, even if i wanted to - i'd feel horrible about keeping secrets from them. even if i was scared to say anything, they needed to know. i can trust them, and i know they wouldn't care about who i like. so that's how i ended up at the park, sitting on a picnic bench with joshua, tobias and eva. obviously, as it was a friday after school, the three of us rode down to the park like we did every friday if the weather was good. the snow from the week before still remained in some places, but other than that it was perfectly fine. we all wore our gloves and scarves - well, they did. i had given mine to hank and my dad had gotten angry that i had ❛lost❜ them - stupid excuse, i know - and decided to punish me by not buying me new ones. obviously, eva tried to make me take hers, but i didn't want to take them from her when she needed them too. i had already said ❝i need to tell you guys something.❞ so there was no going back. i looked down at my hands, biting my lip.

❝okay, i can't keep it from you any longer... but i'm gay.❞

immediately i just burst into tears. i could no longer speak, the only sound i could make was a choked sob as tears streamed down my cheeks. i hated how scary it was, to have to wait for their reactions. it killed me, almost, to have to suffer through this silence - the fact that i could either regret this more than anything i've ever done scared me most. however, when tobias and josh reached out and hugged me, i was shocked that i could ever think that they wouldn't accept me, or love me otherwise. eva wasn't happy though, presumably because of how much she loved me and the fact that i could never love her back. 

❝ew.❞ she said, clearly disgusted. she stood up and stormed off, but i just shrugged. if she didn't like me anymore then it's her loss.

❝hey, dude, it's perfectly fine. we love you anyway.❞ tobias said, smiling.

❝so... who's the lucky guy?❞ josh asked, winking at me.

my face immediately heated up. the two of them were going to take the piss out of me for it, especially for who it is i like.

i mean, the three of us bullied him, practically. there was no way he would like me back, or that my best friends would support my crush on him. but then again, i was wrong about their reaction, and hopefully i was wrong about their reaction this time. i let out a deep sigh, and went quiet for a few minutes. it seemed like tobias read my mind, because he said something.

❝it's zipzer, isn't it?❞ he said, his smile widening. ❝you always have that look in your eyes when you look at him.❞ and joshua nodded in agreement. ❝it's so obvious, nick. he may not see it, but we do.❞

and as we hugged again, i felt happier than i did earlier.

—————

arriving home after spending the rest of the day with tobias and josh, i sat down on my bed and messaged hank.

queenbee: hi hank.

zipperboy: hey! :)

queenbee: how are you?

zipperboy: i'm okay, i guess. me and emily went to the library earlier. what about you?

queenbee: i'm good. can i tell you something?

zipperboy: of course you can.

queenbee: ...i'm gay. and i came out to my friends today. they were really supportive so :)

zipperboy: really? to be honest, i don't think i like girls either. they're nice and pretty and fun to be around but... i don't see myself with one. but there's a boy i see myself with. and i'm scared he'll reject me.

queenbee: well if whoever he is has a brain, he'll say yes :)

zipperboy: thanks, theo. you're the best :)

the best. hank zipzer thinks i'm the best. i begin smiling like an idiot, and we message each other until neither of us can stay awake anymore.

hopefully it's me that my darling sunshine boy is talking about. i really hope it is. i can't bear to see him with anyone else.


	6. ❝ego semper te dilexit❞

the whole school had been looking forward to this for the longest time. it was the annual skating trip we went on every winter; me, josh and tobias had been excited for it for what seemed like the longest time. i was surprised to see that hank had been able to bring in his permission slip to go - he had forgotten it last year. but either way, it made me happy because hank was excited too, and his eyes lit up and he smiled and he just looked so adorable. i know i say this a lot, but i really do love hank zipzer. a lot.

it had been a few days since i came out to my friends and hank said he would ask out the boy he liked - but it seemed like he didn't. which still gave me hope that it could be me. but even so, why would he want to be mine? i was ever so rude to him, and even an idiot would know better than to forgive me. me, josh and tobias had spent the whole weekend having phone calls and discussing the plan. we were going to meet up at our favourite spot and, from there, ride our bikes to school to get there around half past six and so we'd be on the bus for seven, when we were supposed to leave. josh had given me his old gloves and scarf for my friends had been scared i would get sick or something. 

the three of us had gone ice skating many times in our lives, and i would be lying if i said i didn't think we were quite good at it ourselves. everyone else could tell we were good too. they complimented our techniques sometimes, especially the people who seemed to fawn over us - which was most people. hank wasn't most people, and i think that's what i liked most about him. he was different. and i know it sounds cliché, but it's true - and not just because he's dyslexic. he's always been different in other ways.

—————

zipperboy: r u goin on the skating trip??

queenbee: yeah!! what about you?

i already knew what hank was going to say, but i was going to pretend i didn't for obvious reasons.

zipperboy: i am too!! maybe i'll see you on the bus?

there were about four busses, one for each year group that was going (seven to nine) and an extra one. i knew some of the children in our year would end up sitting on a different room because there weren't enough seats on that bus. knowing this would help conceal my identity more, i replied with:

queenbee: you might ;)

zipperboy: well, maybe we'll see each other later.

queenbee: i hope so.

—————

as i got on my bike at ten past six, i began to ride down to our favourite spot. it was an area of trees next to a lake, and we would spend our summers there playing in the sun, sleeping in the shade and swimming in the lake. we had actually met there when we were very young. josh and tobias were already there waiting for me, and once i arrived we talked and continued riding our bikes. we arrived there a few minutes before we were expecting but we got our mark and sat in the canteen like we were supposed to until it was about ten to seven, and we got on the bus. i had been one of the last children to get on and was shoved into a seat next to mr rock. we never really talked, and i wasn't close with him at all, unlike hank. i was close with ms adolf, and only because i was her star student. i wasn't expecting him to speak to me at all, especially about what we ended up talking about.

❝nick, you like h-❞ he began, before i covered his mouth. i sighed and nodded, and he... smiled?

❝yeah, i do. a lot. but please don't tell him!❞ i said, and he did a zipping mouth gesture to show he wouldn't.

how is it so obvious to them that i like hank? i try to hide it, but i guess i'm not as good at it as i thought.

—————

it was around half past ten when we arrived, giving us half an hour to walk around and go to the shops near the skating rink. obviously, me, josh and tobias had gotten off immediately and began walking towards the shops. the three of us brought some money with us to buy things, as we had been told to do. we shopped for a bit, until it was time to go to the ice rink, and when we arrived, there weren't many people there and we had to wait for everybody else. we had put our bags down and gotten our shoes swapped for ice skates. we sat down and put them on, waiting for the staff to let us get on the ice. the three of us got on first, showing our skills, while the majority of the other children wobbled around hopelessly. i saw hank, frankie and ashley skating too, and i glanced at hank a few times as i skated. i hoped i would be able to get his attention, because that's all i ever wanted. i saw hank trying to do some sort of move, and he fell. i glided over as fast as i could, catching him and lifting him, before skating back over to my friends. the three just watched me in confusion as i skated back to my group of friends. they must have been shocked to see me, nick mckelty, catch hank zipzer when he was falling over. but i couldn't let my sunshine boy get hurt.

—————

we had been able to shop for a while again after we went ice skating, but we just wandered the shops until we had to return to the bus. this time, i got to sit by josh and tobias, and we laughed and joked the whole way home. today had been good, but it would be even better to get a message from hank. and, as if he could read my mind, it happened.

zipperboy: do you want to know what happened to me today?

i knew exactly what it was he wad going to say to me already.

queenbee: what happened?

zipperboy: when we went ice skating, i fell over. but the weird thing is... the boy who has been my enemy for years helped me today.

queenbee: maybe he felt bad about what he did. or maybe he just didn't want to see you get hurt.

zipperboy: i doubt that's true.

queenbee: well, maybe you don't know him well enough.

and i smiled to myself the whole way home, hoping maybe it could make him want to be my friend and to possibly forgive me.


	7. ❝aeternum tua❞

today is parent's evening. parent's evening is horrible, every single one i ever had to attend. my dad is never happy with me or _anything_ i do. it hurts a lot because my friends have such wonderful parents who love them, and my dad isn't like that. while my friends were raised by nice parents who cared, i was raised by a man who couldn't care less about me. they know and understand why i'm the way i am and they still love me. i'm always under constant pressure to get good grades, to not drag the mckelty name through the dirt. but i'm not like him. i'm not a liar, i'm not a horrible person, i'm not a bully. i'm just scared of what could happen to me if i didn't listen.

it's about six, one of the latest times to have an appointment. the sky has darkened, now a blackish deep blue colour. i'm sitting on the steps outside the back of the building, holding my coat in my arms. my father and i had been inside, speaking with ms adolf, when he gives me a look. i know that look, and it's not a good one. i sigh, and make an excuse; “i need to go to the toilet” may have sucked, but it was enough to get me out of there. i'm going to be dead if he finds me out here, but do i really care about that anymore?

i check the time on my watch. it's about five past six; our appointment had most likely ended by this time. hank had gotten the last appointment, which meant he most likely arrived at school already, or would in a few minutes. i hoped to get a quick peek at hank before i had to go. i hear my dad calling me from the side of the building, so i ran back inside, but soon ran into something else - or someone else. hank. i grabbed his hand and dragged him into the boy's bathroom, waiting for my dad to leave the area. hank turned to me, his arms crossed, his eyebrow raised.

❝mckelty, what the hell?❞ he exclaimed. i pressed a finger to his lips, shushing him. ❝be quiet, please. he'll hear us and i'll be in even more trouble with him if he finds me.❞

he was confused by my words, evident from the look on his face. he looked even more confused, unsure than he did before. then again, i'd be confused if my worst enemy dragged me into a bathroom and tell me that there's someone trying to find them. he asks me who i'm hiding from, and what'll happen if they find me.

❝i'm hiding from my dad.❞ i whisper, biting my lip and looking down at the ground. i hated talking about him. i sigh, before telling him the second part. ❝you know those scars i always seem to get... that i blame on things that could probably never happen...❞

i didn't need to continue. it seemed that hank had put two and two together at this point. he awkwardly wrapped his arms around me, trying to calm me down and make me feel better. if i showed up to school tomorrow, injured, hank would know what it was that was happening. i held him close, not wanting to let go. not only was this the first affectionate touch i had felt in many years, but this was a chance to hug the boy i like.

by the time dad found me and dragged me out to the car, i knew hank and his life like the back of my hand. and he knew many things i could never tell anyone else.

—————

when the next day comes around, i feel like all my troubles have disappeared, despite the events that happened after we had returned home. in which i had gotten a split lip and a cut on my cheek, looking as if it was made with a piece of glass or a knife. i wake up early, get ready and have breakfast like usual. i spend a little more time than i usually do on my hair and then i brush my teeth, immediately running outside and hopping on my bike.

when i arrived, me, josh and tobias spoke for a bit about things that weren't all that important. we speak until someone else catches my eye - my sunshine boy from across the yard. my heart skips a beat as i walk towards him and ashley. frankie was probably going to be late like he was yesterday. hank's blue eyes met his own, and hank immediately frowned and took his hand in his.

❝hi nick- are you okay? that looks painful. was it...❞ hank says. i simply nodded, knowing what hank meant. ashley was most likely so shocked to see that not only were we on a first name basis, we held hands and cared about each others' pain. hank sighs, looking visibly upset and walked me towards a tree off to the side of the school.

❝i hate him. he shouldn't be able to put his hands on you.❞ he said angrily. it made me feel warm inside to know he cared this much about me and me being okay. i place my hand on his arm, frowning. ❝i know, i know. but please don't do or say anything about it. even if you think you should.❞ i whisper. and as he puts his arms around me, i feel even more sure that this boy, hank zipzer, is the one i want to be with forever.


End file.
